


Christmas Yet To Come

by CatlynGunn



Category: Interstellar Series, Invader Zim
Genre: And you finally get to meet Chance, Based on RP, But it's really the journey right?, Christmas, Dek and Midge have a lot of kids, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Interstellar Christmas Special Part Two Electric Boogaloo, Kidnapping, M/M, Multi, OC Kids - Freeform, Peril, Poisoning, Polyamory, Spoilers for things to come, This is extremely OC heavy so if that's not your thing I'm sorry, Time Travel, Violence, attempted child murder, co-created with RottingLapine, memory manipulation, rewrite of an rp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:47:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21864184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatlynGunn/pseuds/CatlynGunn
Summary: Ten year old Addie Denivar really thought this was gonna be another normal Christmas get together with her friends and family. That is...until she gets kidnapped by possibly the worst human in existence...Just in case this doesn't show up, I want everyone to know that this has a co-creator! The wonderful and talented RottingLapine. Go follow them on all the things because they're lovely and I'm so proud of our little world here.
Relationships: Addie/Iris/Chance (just snippet), Almighty Tallest Purple/Almighty Tallest Red, Dib/Zim (Invader Zim), Gaz/Tak (Invader Zim), Invader Larb/Massive Pilot, Midge/Dek (Interstellar Series)
Comments: 19
Kudos: 20





	Christmas Yet To Come

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Sualocin](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13222458) by [CatlynGunn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatlynGunn/pseuds/CatlynGunn). 

> HELLO! I have returned with this nonsense
> 
> I put this in the tags, but I'm gonna put this here too. This one shot is VERY OC heavy. The core canon characters show up maybe here or there but not much. This is also a bit of a prelude for things to come (and also kinda spoils some of it) but I'm a big fan of enjoying the journey instead of the destination, you feel? But if you don't wanna be spoiled then you're welcome to skip over this story. Though I'm pretty sure people are gonna skip over it anyway. No one likes OCs XD)
> 
> Special Thanks to my pal Vi, @agentmothmanstrikesagain for allowing to use their precious Zipper and also to my partner in building this insane beautiful universe, RottingLapine aka Janne. You're both my drift compatible platonic soulmates and I love you both to pieces.

When Queen Midge of Lazuroth started hosting the annual Christmas get-togethers, it was mostly for the aesthetic. Lazuroth was snowy after all, and with the capital city decked out in millions of glittering, multi-colored lights, it looked like a cross between a Thomas Kinkade painting and a concept drawing of Disney’s Frozen. The beauty and magic of it all could be greatly appreciated.

However, that did not change the fact that the place was absolutely and insufferably cold.

“I blame you,” Purple said to his mate as they were beamed down onto the snowy planet.

“...They are literally your friends,” Red deadpanned, adjusting his thick, robes. Even with the millions of layers all the Irkens were wearing, the cold here was merciless.

“_ Our _ friends,” Purple corrected, as if he wasn’t the one who had started this argument. “But still! I blame you for our clothes not being more...cold resistant.”

Red gave a long suffering sigh. “Pur, our outfits are made of the warmest material in the entire cosmos. I’m not sure what more you could want.”

“I _ want _ to be in the warmest material in all of existence.”

“I’m sure Midge will have adjusted the temperature for us. Her mate is part Irken and so are all her children. Not to mention all the other Irkens here with us.”

“...This is still your fault.”

“I’m going to leave you here.”

“You wouldn’t _ dare. _”

Among the group that had arrived with the Tallests was another couple, both of whom were held in extremely high regard. After Tak had retired from her post of advisor, deciding to simply explore the universe with her own human mate, Former Invader Larb had taken up the post. Not long after he’d found himself smitten with the Massive’s pilot, Vasco, and they’d became mates rather quickly. They’re favorite past time became gossiping about their leaders and how ridiculous they could be. Which they currently said to each other silently at the moment. Larb couldn’t help but reach over and take his mate’s hand. It was amazing how they could have a conversation with simply looks.

“You can leave me here!” a small Irken beside them chirped as they approached the exit from the shipyard. “Then I could hang out with Addie all the time!”

“Iris we are not leaving you here,” Red told him, almost as if brushing away the notion. Of course their son wasn’t serious.

“Yeah! Have you seen how many smeets Midge and Dek have? You’d get lost!” Purple explained.

“...That is not what I meant,” Red told his mate.

“Tch. You wouldn’t last a week on this planet anyway!” drawled another smeet, who was walking between Larb and Vasco. His orange eyes glittered with malicious challenge. “You’d freeze to death before the day is out!”

Iris growled, glaring over his shoulder at the other boy. “I would not! I’d definitely last longer than you, Thonus!”

Thonus grinned wickedly. “Oh yeah? Prove it!”

“Thonus, what have we said about threatening the heir to the Irken throne?” Larb asked. He and Vasco were far too used to this sort of banter between the young Irkens, as were the Tallests.

“I wasn’t threatening,” Thonus argued. “I was challenging. There is a difference. It’s not like you two don’t complain about his parents behind their-,”

“We do no such thing!” Vasco hissed, putting a hand over his son’s mouth. He exchanged looks with Larb. Yes, Red and Purple might have become much more lenient with punishments, the days of throwing people out of airlocks a distant memory, but that didn’t mean they were ones to tolerate disrespect.

However, it seemed this was a glorious moment of reprieve. “Eh. No worries, you two,” Purple said. “Midge tells me kids just blurt things out sometimes. And besides, it’s good for Iris to have a rival. Give him some good competition.” He reached down and patted his son’s head.

Iris gave a soft grumble, dark blue eyes narrowed. “Thonus is not competition.”

“Says the loser who can’t even win a race against me,” Thonus stated confidently.

“I’ll win next time! Just you wait!” Iris snarled.

“Oh, yeah! Then prove it! First one to the castle is the winner!”

“You’re on!”

The group nearly stumbled as the two youngsters took off, bolting at full speed toward the castle doors. Red gave a chuckle out of nowhere as he watched them, making Purple look at him curiously. “What’s so funny?”

Red leaned over and gave his mate a quick nuzzle. “He’s just like you.”

Purple scoffed. “Nah. He gets his good looks from you.” There was suddenly a loud thud of something falling onto something hard, and the Tallests looked up to see that their son had slipped and fallen on the icy cobblestone. There was a faint whimper carried by the wind, obviously the sound of a child trying not to cry. 

Red’s brow furrowed in worry. “Should we...check on him?”

Purple shook his head. “Midge says around this age it’s better to kind of...let them come to you. Plus he’s already lost the competition. I don’t want to wound his pride.”

Red continued to look conflicted. “I’m buying him an extra present in town.”

Purple chuckled. “You would.”

00000000000000000

“Should you be wandering around on your own, your highness?” one of the town guards ask as a small girl with snow white hair walked past.

Said girl gave an annoyed pout. “I’ve been wandering around on my own since I could walk,” she said proudly. “Also my Uncle Zim put trackers in me and all my siblings. I’ll be fine.”

The guard opened and closed his mouth several times before the girl simply walked away, her pointed ears twitching in the soft, cold breeze.

Addie Denivar loved and hated Lazuroth all at once. On one hand, it was very beautiful, seeming to hold a special sort of magic that Earth and Irk II didn’t seem to have. But on the other, it was freezing, which made it hard to entirely love it. However, this time of year it was hard to hate anything. It was Christmas Eve! Which meant a huge party with all the friends and family they’re group had, which included a couple of people Addie was beyond excited to see again.

One of her ears twitched again, this time at a distant sound. Two distant sounds, in fact. One sounded like angry whimpers and growls while the other appeared more triumphant, if not arrogant. Addie picked up her pace as she jogged toward the noise, finding the very boys she’d been waiting on. And though as excited as she was to see them, she was not happy about the sight she was seeing.

“Thonus what did you do?!” Addie demanded, her hands flying to her hips.

Thonus stopped laughing his face falling into one of shock and embarrassment. “A-Addie! I didn’t do anything We...we were just…”

Iris quickly wiped his face and sniffled. “It’s m-my fault. I challenged Thonus to a race and fell.” Not a complete lie, and it certainly wasn’t the first time Iris had fudged the truth just to keep Addie from getting too mad at Thonus. He wasn’t sure why he ever bothered, seeing as any other time he and Thonus were at each other’s throats. But it seemed the one and only thing the two of them could agree on was to never upset Addie.

Addie glanced between the two of them before sighing dramatically. “Boys are stupid,” she grumbled before going over to Iris and helping him up. The knees of his pants were rather worn and frayed from the fall, and had they been made of weaker material Iris probably would have scraped his knees. She offered her best friend a sweet, encouraging smile as she reached over and smushed his cheeks. “Come on! Mama’s already put the sweets out!” She then grabbed Iris by the hand and dragged him behind her. “Come on, Thonus!”

Thonus watched the two of them dash by, deflating and growling. It never seemed to matter what he did to be impressive, Addie seemed to always favor Iris. It was annoying, especially since Iris was such a crybaby! He couldn’t understand at all why she seemed to like the Tallest heir more than him!

However, that didn’t stop him from following the two of them inside, even as his left antennae twitched in irritation.

00000000000000

“I’m surprised your number one fan isn’t following you around asking you a million questions,” Midge joked as she hugged Purple tightly.

Purple chuckled, giving the queen’s head a quick pat. “She’s busy dragging my son on adventures with her these past few years.”

“Oh dear, replaced by your nine year old son. How will you ever go on?” Midge joked.

“You’re still as much of a brat as ever.”

“Naturally,” she said with a wink.

The two of them shared what seemed to be a comfortable silence, the rest of Purple’s group beginning to go in separate directions. Red had wandered off to admire some of the Christmas decor, mainly the laser light show along one of the walls. The tension seemed to rise the more people walked away, soon leaving Midge and Purple on their own.

“...Have you had any more attacks?” Midge asked, her voice almost inaudibly low.

Purple shook his head, his hand resting on his abdomen, right over where his squeedlyspooch was. “Not for the past month, thank goodness,” he replied. “Red’s been good about keeping my stress levels low, even if I don’t make it easy for him.”

Some time after Iris’ “birth,” Purple began experience strange sensations in his middle, some that would escalate into incapacitating pain. Finally Midge was brought in to look into it, finding that Purple had appeared to have developed a rare spooch condition, one that could become potentially fatal.

However, Midge had also researched through some Irken medical archives to find that there was a procedure that could more or less fix the issue. However, it did not come without risks. But Midge was confident. She wasn’t the Chief Medical Officer of Team Nebula for nothing.

“Just another month, Purple,” Midge told him, reaching over to touch his arm reassuringly. “After the surgery you’ll be good as new. No more attacks. Promise.”

Purple snorted. “I wish I was as confident as you are.”

“Oh it’s just to hide how fucking terrified I am, don’t worry.”

“...I can’t tell if you’re joking or not.”

“And for your sake, you never will.”

There was suddenly a loud shriek, followed by a small girl stomping around the corner. She had Irken compound eyes, as all the Denivar children did, with one being green and one blue. Her white hair was tied into two braids, and both her antennae and tiny horns twitched in irritation.

“Mama! Rían brought another creature home!” Ruby Denivar whined.

“He’s not a creature! He’s a Ignadon. They’re the only species of reptile that live on Lazuroth!” argued Rían as he followed his sister with said lizard his arms. His antennae vibrated excitedly from his fluffy white hair, his bubblegum pink eyes lit up with mirth.

“What it is, is something that needs to get away from me!” Ruby insisted.

Just as Midge was about to interfere, her oldest son came around the corner holding her youngest. Drun’s big, cerulean blue eyes looks troubled, the smeet in his arms covered from head to toe in some kind of slime. Midge was sufficiently distracted by this. “Drun Byzantium what happened to your brother?”

“I don’t know?” Drun insisted, holding out the sticky four year old Zon. “I noticed he ran off and when I found him he was like this.”

“I made slime!” Zon exclaimed proudly.

Midge sighed, looking back up at Purple, who was trying very hard not to laugh. “You want more kids.”

Purple laughed even harder. “I think one for me and Red is plenty.”

0000000000000000

Soon even more people arrived, included Dib, Zim, Zipper and, the youngest of the Membranes, Nico. Tak and Gaz also arrived, quite nearly crash landing. Apparently they’d pulled some sort of heist and had to pull out of warp a little too soon. Dek tried to make a joke but was quickly reminded that his own piloting skills were at a negative, so he said nothing more.

The palace was bustling with merriment, everyone catching up on what ever one was up to. Dib and Midge’s families, of course, talked almost everyday, yet the two best friends could always find something to talk about. Everyone else was preoccupied with the conversation, the food and the decor, seeming absorbed in all the magic Christmas had to offer.

Little Addie, however, had a much different kind of magic that caught her attention.

“Are we supposed to be out this far?” Iris asked, looking over his shoulder, It wasn’t uncommon for he, Addie and Thonus to slip away from the grown ups, but with the capital city seeming rather far at this point, he couldn’t help but feel a little apprehensive.

“Don’t be a baby, Iris,” Addie told her friend cheerfully. She held a device in her hand that she had made herself, looking up from it every now and then to make sure they were headed to right was. “Besides, don’t you want to know what this thing is, too? It has to be something pretty wild to make readings like this!”

Iris looked over Addie’s shoulder at the device. “What are we looking for anyway?”

“I’ve been experimenting with the radio waves of the shield over Lazuroth, mostly looking to see what exactly sets it off these days and what doesn’t. Obviously ships are a normal occurrence as well as the occasional meteor. But something made it jump like crazy last night, and even now the readings are all over the place.” She furrowed her brow. “I’m not really sure what to make of it. So! I’m gonna find out!”

“Shouldn’t we like, you know, tell our parents if something weird like that is going on?” Iris suggested.

“Don’t be silly! I’m not gonna be the next star engineer of Team Nebula by running to my parents.”

“Yeah, Iris!” Thonus said, sticking his tongue out at the younger boy even through his chattering teeth.. “Don’t be such a weenie.”

“I’m not a weenie you-,”

Suddenly, Addie gasped. “We’re getting close! Come on!” She took off at a jog, the device in her hand beeping faster and faster. Iris and Thonus merely exchanged looks before the took off after her. The three of them ran until they came to a nearby cave, stopping just as they entered the large mouth. Addie looked around for a moment before pressing a button on the device to produce a light. The device was still beeping.

“Addie, I don’t like this…” Iris told her, looking around at the cave warily.

“It’s just a cave, Iris,” Thonus told him. “The dark can’t hurt you.”

“Would you shut up?!” Iris snapped at him, gritting his teeth.

“What if I don’t? Gonna tell your dads on me?”

Addie however, didn’t seem to notice the two boys arguing, focused on the device in her hands. She huffed, her breath visible in front of her, before continuing to follow wherever this device was leading her. She had so many theories about what it could be, but didn’t know where to start. Was it a supernatural being? Some sort of time/space phenomena? Or was there merely a glitch in the shields that needed to be repaired.

Addie stopped again when she heard shuffling, like something moving in the darkness. She shined the flashlight around, her sydark beginning and thump wildly in her chest. “Who...who’s there?”

For the longest time there was no response, just the quiet sounds of wind in the cave. Addie was just about to turn around, decide Iris was right and they should go back, when she was stopped by a tall figure with the iciest blue eyes she’d ever seen.

“You could have tried to make this a challenge, _little bird.”_

Addie only got about half a scream out when something collided against her head, knocking her out.

0000000000000000

“You’re a jerk!”

“You’re a crybaby!”

“You’re just jealous because Addie likes me better!”

“Please! She’s just feels sorry for you because you’re a crybaby!”

Iris had completely forgotten how long they’d been arguing, his face already pink from yelling and from the cold. He was so sick of Thonus thinking he was better than he was! What made him think that anyway! He was literally the son of the Tallests and Addie had said herself that he was her best friend. Thonus just needed to shut up already!

Both boys stopped shouting all at once when they heard a short, but loud and distressing scream. With a quick look around, it wasn’t hard to figure out who it had come from.

“Addie!”

000000000000000

“I’ve told her time and time again not to wander off like that! Especially that far!” Midge rambled in a panicked tone as she and Team Nebula went into action, suiting up and arming up to go after Addie. "Are you sure you can't get a read on her, Zim?"

“Huh. Sounds like a certain uncle of hers,” Zim commented, eyeing Dib. "And no, unfortunately. Something has the signal scrambled, but that could be anything from the weather to her being somewhere with a scrambly...thingy..."

“Hey! You can’t blame me for this!” He replied almost dismissively. "And a scrambly-thingy? Really?"

“Are we gonna argue or are we gonna go find her?" Zipper said impatiently, already cocking a gun in her hands.

Dib sighed, knowing against both his mate and his daughter, he had very little argument. He turned to Tak and Gaz. “You don’t mind staying behind with Milgor and the others?”

Gaz shrugged. “Someone’s gotta watch the other kids,” she said matter-of-factly. “There’s a lot of them.”

“Honestly I knew Dek and Midge were fertile but good Irk,” Tak added.

“They’re not all ours, you know,” Dek told her before looking over at the Tallests. “You don’t have to come. We have enough people here.”

“And listen to my son terrified for his friend without having any answers? I think not,” Purple answered firmly. The truth was he adored Addie very much. But, of course, he wasn’t about to admit that.

Luckily, he didn’t have to. Especially to his mate. “What he said,” Red told Dek.

Dek huffed. “Alright then. Keep up.” He shouted at the rest of the group. “Let’s roll out!”

00000000000000

Addie groaned as she came to, her head pounding. She squeezed her eyes shut and then open again, gazing around at her surroundings. She’d never seen this place before. It was a small, dimly lit room, the ceiling showing visible air ducts and some other piping. Three of the walls were metal, while one was a giant window. Addie’s eyes widened in shock and fear. Now she could see the man who had taken her clearly, his ice eyes and heavily gray hair easily recognizable from the history articles she’d read in the past and archives she’d managed to find. She struggled to get up only to find herself tied to the chair she was in. 

“No use, little bird!” Dwight Dwicky told her, his face contorting into a horrible and smug smirk. “Those bindings are made of grade A material. You won’t be escaping, I’m afraid.”

Addie glared, a pitiful growl coming from her throat, like a discontented kitten. “You better let me go if you know what’s good for you!” she told him boldly. “My Mama and Daddy are gonna kick your ass!”

“Ooh! Tough words for such a small thing, huh?’ He snickered, coming a little closer to the glass. Now that Addie could really look at him, she noticed the gray in his hair seemed much more prominent than in all his pictures, as well as the wrinkles along his eyes and mouth. Her brow furrowed. Had being imprisoned aged him so much? “Unfortunately, your highness, even if your parents manage to find out where we are, there’s no way they’ll get here in time.” 

Dwicky reached over and pulled a lever, and a loud hissing sound filled the room. It was followed by slow, pink clouds beginning to waft into the small room Addie was in. Fear seized her and she struggled again. She knew what that gas was. 

“You...you can’t do this!” Addie yelled at him, watching the Cyatrophix begin to fill the room. “You won’t get away with this.”

“Oh, my _ sweet summer child, _” Dwicky taunted, “I’m afraid I already have.”

Addie swallowed a whimper that threatened to escape her. What did Uncle Zim teach her? Don’t show fear. No matter what never ever show fear. She knew there was no holding her breath, she wouldn’t be able to hold it for the length it would take for her family to come for her. But maybe she could escape before she got a fatal dose. 

She shuffled her bound hands behind her, trying to get to her wrist device. Dwicky hadn’t taken it, it seemed. The angle her hands were tied made trying to get to the device difficult, but she could do it. She had to tell herself that. She had to try.

0000000000000000

“Predictable as always isn’t he?” Admiral Denivar said as she and her companions made it to their destination

“You think kidnapping would get old for him.” replied one of them, a human young man with fire engine red hair.

“Nah. I think it’s just a curse my family has.”

“I think the next time he kidnaps any version of you I’m gonna capture him and throw him out the airlock.” Snarled the third group member, a tall Irken with deep, breathtaking blue eyes.

“Easy there, _ My Tallest.” _the human cooed

“...In case you haven’t noticed, _ pretty boy, _ we’re on a mission right now.” the Irken told him with a glare.

Admiral Denivar rolled her eyes. “Boys. You can flirt all you want after we get my younger self safe.”

“I’m not flirting he is!” the Irken insisted.

“Uh huh. And you hate it _ so much, _right?”

“...I’m gonna punish both of you when we get back.”

“Is that a promise, My Tallest?” the human asked, batting his eyelashes.

“If you don’t stop-,”

“Heading in without you!” the Admiral called over her shoulder, flipping some of her white hair out of her face.

“Now look what you did! Go follow our Admiral, for Irks sake.” the Irken ordered.

The human smirked and winked. “Yes sir, _ My Tallest.” _

0000000000000000

Addie coughed, still struggling to get one of her tools from her wrist watch multi-tool. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been in here, but her throat was starting to burn. She couldn’t remember how long it took for Cyatrophix exposure to become deadly, but she knew she needed to get out of there quick.

“Still trying to escape? It seems even as a child you’re stubborn as ever,” Dwicky told her. That made Addie’s brow furrowed. What did he mean by that? Why was it phrased so strangely? Never mind. It wasn’t important right now. She finally gotten the screen of her watch positioned to face her other hand. Come on!

“Shut up!” Addie shouted at him, hoping that if she stayed engaged with his taunting he wouldn’t notice what she was doing. So far it was working.

“So angry,” Dwicky sneered. “I can’t possibly imagine what you’d have to be angry about at this point in time. Eh. I suppose it doesn’t matter. Perhaps after I’m done with you I’ll go back for your little boyfriend. Get rid of him before he becomes as terrible as his parents.”

Addie growled murderously, the sound tapering off into a wheezy cough. “You leave my friends alone!”

“I don’t believe you have to power to make me, Princess,” Dwicky told her condescendingly. “And soon you will be nothing more than a memory to your family.”

Addie glowered. _ Come on, you stupid device, make something happen! _

As if Togal herself had answered Addie’s prayers, her wrist watch beeped and a small laser appeared in one of her hands. She tried not to show her shock and relief on her face, but maybe the smoke would distort her anyway. Slowly and carefully and used the laser to cut the binding on her wrists before reaching down and quickly slicing her ankles.

“What?! How did you-?!”

“You shouldn’t underestimate people just because they’re a kid!” Addie told him. She pressed another button and a grappling hook shot up from her wrist watch, snatching the top of one of the vents. She used the rope to shoot herself up, landing on top of the air duct. After some shimming she managed to find another vent, quickly crawling into it.

000000000000000000

Dwicky nearly shrieked in frustration, pulling his communicator from his pocket. “Leera get this place on-”

He didn’t finish his sentence, as a large, purple bat suddenly collided with his face. He screamed and stumbled, dropping his communicator in the process. His lightsaber was in his hand quickly as he whirled around. His face contorted in anger and hatred. “Of course you’re here, you insufferable bitch.”

Admiral Denivar merely gave a faux pout. “Aww, no little bird today? We must have made you very angry this time.”

“I’m going to kill you!”

“Considering that you haven’t yet, I don’t think you are.” the Admiral twirled her bat, it’s form changing into a brilliant, glowing glaive. She smirked. “Who knows, though. Maybe eighty-fifth time's the charm?

Dwicky roared, charging at the Admiral at full speed.

0000000000000000

Addie didn’t stop just yet, shuffling through the vent. She wasn’t sure where she was going, or even where she really was, she just needed to get as far away from that room as possible. Her head hurt and she felt a little dizzy. She shook her head. She had to keep going!

In her dazed state, she found herself running into something, making a pitiful squeak as she did. She blinked a few times, making a pitiful groan as she finally opened her eyes. The icy blues she was met with made her gasp in horror, and she shuffled back in the vent.

“Whoa, whoa, hey,” the man said gently. Upon closer inspection Addie noticed that even with the exact same eye color, this man was much younger than Dwicky, and also had bright, bold red hair instead of graying black. Though Addie deducting that it had to be dyed. He was also dressed differently, a tight, armored bodysuit that exposed his shoulders. Along one of them Addie noticed a tattoo. The Irken Medic symbol. Her eyes widened and blinked. “You’re okay. I’m not gonna hurt you, alright?”

Addie continued to stare, uncertain. “You...you look…” But also he didn’t. What was going on?

The human chuckled, but there was no humor behind it. More of a sadness. “Yeah...yeah I know. But I promise I’m on your side, okay?” He scooted up a bit, keeping his movements slow as he approached Addie. “I’m a doctor, actually. Can you come over here? You’re really badly poisoned and I can help you.”

Addie continued to hesitate, her vision blurring here and there. She felt like she was going to pass out, but she had to hold on. “How...how do I know you’re not lying?” 

The human tilted his head, seeming lost in thought. Finally he answered, “You have a stuffed penguin named Dickens. You named him after your favorite author.”

Addie’s eyes widened, her sydark jumping. “How...how do you know that?”

“I can’t tell you everything, unfortunately. Gotta be careful here, after all. But...I care about you. A lot. You mean a great deal to me.” 

Addie hesitated for just a moment longer before another dizzy spell hit her. She knew she needed an antidote of some sort or she wasn’t going to make it. She coughed again before crawling over to the human, hoping she was correct in thinking that if he was going to kill her he would have done it by now.

“I...I like your hair,” she told him as she watched him rummage through a pack on his waist.

“Yeah? My husband likes it, too. Reminds him of one of his dads.” He pulled out a syringe and a vial of some kind of yellowish liquid. Addie grimaced. She didn’t like needles. The human seemed to notice. “Don’t focus on the needle, okay? Just focus on me. Keep talking, okay?”

Addie turned back to the floor and nodded. “You’re...married?”

“Yup!” He replied, taking a moment to pull a necklace from under his shirt. Addie immediately recognized the charm as an Orok. The shape was lovely, an angular heart shape in gold. There seem to be two glass bubbles of blood, also brought together in the shape of a heart. One of the bubbles held pink blood while the other was purple. There was also a dark red gem at the gold heart’s bottom point.

“Why are there two containers of blood on yours?” she asked.

“Because I also have a wife,” the human answered easily as he filled the syringe. He offered Addie a stunning smile. He was definitely a handsome one. “All three of us are married to each other.”

“...You can do that?”

“Sure can!” He chuckled again. “It took a lot for us to get here but...it’s been worth it.” He slowly reached over, giving Addie time to pull away if she wanted. She didn’t as he put a hand on her head and gave her hair a gentle pet. “Always remember that, okay? No matter how tough things get. It’s always gonna be worth it in the end.”

Addie couldn’t help the little chirp she gave at being pet, and she found her trust for this human soar. Not many people knew how much she enjoyed having in her hair pet and played with, probably just her Mama and Daddy. There was a feeling she couldn’t explain suddenly. An attachment but...more. It felt weird.

“Okay, wanna sing a song with me for a minute? Remember just look at me don’t look at the needle,” the human explained, lifting Addie’s arm with the needle in hand.

Addie shook off another wave of dizziness, nodding in acknowledgement. “O-okay.”

The human smiled again and then began to sing Winter Wonderland. Addie joined in, singing ng the lyrics as best she could remember in her current state. The boy had a very nice voice. It reminded Addie of the lead singer of one of her Mama's favorite bands. “There we go. Should start taking effect rather quickly.” He looked over his shoulder. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here, yeah?”

Addie nodded, beginning to follow the boy down the opposite end of the vents. He pressed a button on his wristband and talked into it. “Little Princess has been secured.”

“About time!” Came a deep, gruff voice. “You know how long I’ve been trying to keep these guards from interfering with our mate’s fight?”

“I’m sure you’re as exhilarating as ever, My Tallest.”

“Well doesn’t matter, now. Damn bastard got away again,” came a female voice. Addie’s brow furrowed. She sounded like her Mama...except maybe a little raspier? “Get her to our ship. We’re headed back.”

“You got it, Songbird,” the human replied before hanging up.

Addie gave him a curious look. “Was that your husband and wife?”

“Yup!”

“...Why did you call your husband your Tallest? There’s only two Tallests of Irk and they’re my best friend’s parents.”

That made him go quiet for a moment before he gave a soft sigh. “Would you believe me if I said we’re from the future?” he asked.

Addie contemplated that. She’d done all kinds of research on time travel and it wasn’t completely impossible. Just...difficult and improbable. Still though… “You’d have to be from _very_ far into the future. Irkens live a very long time, and my best friend is the heir to the throne.”

The human laughed nervously. “He sure is.”

Addie frowned. He wasn’t giving her any straight answers, but considering she was already starting to feel better since he gave her the antidote, she felt a little bad arguing. So instead, she just pouted, continuing to follow him down the vents. Eventually he broke one of the covers open and hopped down. “Alright, Addie. You’re gonna jump to me, okay?”

Addie crawled over to the opening. It was too far down. She took a breath and dropped down. The human caught her with great ease and sat her down. Now she could see how tall he really was, she couldn’t help but feel small.

“Come on. Our ships over here,” the human told her, gesturing toward what looked like a much older ship model that had been made to look good as new. Addie followed him toward it and then inside, continuing to look around. 

“Where are we?” she asked.

“A ship my - that Dwicky stole from the Sualocin Battalion a while back. Not as big as the Metallah or the Massive but close.”

“What's the Metallah.”

The human hesitated, appearing a little sheepish. “It's what the Vindicator got renamed.” He smiled. “I told you. I'm from the future.”

The ship was a good size, with a bridge that was quite a bit bigger than the Delphina. Addie's eyes widened at all the glittering controls. She'd begged her parents to teach her to fly, but Mama had told her she'd have to wait until she was older, and that Uncle Dib would teach her then. She'd seemed extremely insistent that Daddy would not be the one teaching her. Addie wasn't sure why.

“Alright let's get the hell out of here.”

The voice belonged to a tall Irken that entered the ship. Addie stared at him for a long time, taking in the dark blue and black armor he wore. It reminded her of the Tallests’ armors, except this looked more made for battle than ceremony. The Irken's eyes were breath-taking blue, his face dotted with darker green freckles. She could see the curl of his antennae at the ends.

If there was one thing in this universe that Addie Denivar was not, it was stupid.

“Iris?” She almost whispered, looking up at this older version with wonder.

The Irken balked, his previously confident stature suddenly frazzled and unsure. He looked up at the human, as if asking for help. The human shrugged. “You really expect her _ not _ to know?”

“Of course she would know,” came the female voice Addie had heard before. She looked over at the woman in the doorway, her gaze still a mixture of confused and curious. Her mind had been racing with how she was going to tell Iris that in the future he would marry a doctor who could sing like an angel, but it all crashed together in her brain when she saw this third person. It took Addie a little longer to put together who she was but...the long white hair...the horns and big green eyes...the dusting of blue freckles along her skin. 

“You... you're…” Addie couldn't say it. She couldn't even fathom it. All the pieces were falling into a jumbled pile and she wasn't sure if she wanted to sort through it.

The older hybrid smile softly, giving the human a nod to get the ship going. While he did that, she knelt in front of Addie. “Wanna see something cool?” She showed Addie something on her wrist that looked like a wristwatch. Addie could also see peeks of a tattoo beyond the sleeves. “This is a vortex manipulator. This one can only transport me through time. But I've manage to modify it and install it in this ship.” Then she grinned. “You're going to make this someday.”

Addie stammered. “I...What? I'm…” She took a breath, trying to find her words. It took about a minute. “Are you...me?” Before the other hybrid could even answer Addie began to ramble. “Oh my Togal I marry Iris?! That's crazy though! He's my best friend! Our best friend? How did that happen?! I create a vortex manipulator?! I can travel through time?! Did something happen to make you come here?! Oh no, this is going to create a paradox, isn't it?!

“Addie-”

“I can't believe I marry Iris! He's never gonna believe that! But wait who's that?!” She pointed at the human at the helm of the ship, who exchanged worried glances with the other two adults.

“Addie!” The older hybrid repeated more insistently. Once she had Addie's attention she smiled again. “Lots of things are going to happen between you and me,” she said cryptically, turning a knob on the vortex manipulator. It seemed to have multiple functions, much like the wristwatch Addie wore now. The older Addie then put on a pair of goggles, and Addie noticed the human and older Iris do the same. “As for the why and how, I'm afraid you'll have to figure that out on your own.”

There was a click from the watch and Addie realized what was about to happen. “Is that a deneu-”

There was a flash of light and then Addie's mind went blank.

0000000000000000

“Are you sure it was this cave?” Dek asked as the group scanned the dark caverns for about the thousandth time.

“This is the one that the boys pointed out on the map,” Red explained. “And I trust my son with cartography as much as you trust your daughter around technology. That should tell you something.”

Dek nodded, shining his light around some more. It felt like they'd been searching for hours. 

“Dek...what if she's been taken?” Midge asked, her voice hushed with fear. “What if someone took her for ransom money? Or it was some old leftover supporters of my mother?!”

“Midge. We haven't seen any sign of a ship coming through the grid. And even if any of your mother's supporters still exist, they wouldn't dare lay a hand on one of our children.” A lot of people believed Midge was almost some mythical being because of how much control she had over her adrunel. They wouldn't dare touch her offspring.”

“Also if it was a kidnapping for ransom money, why not take the other valuable kid?” Purple added. “I mean...we'd kill them over it, but there were two heirs to two different-” He stopped, shining his light into a dark corner and gasping. “I found her!”

Midge was the first to rush to her daughter's side, finding the girl barely conscious. “Baby girl can you speak to me? Are you alright?” There was a nasty knot on her head. Maybe she just fell?

Strange that she didn't feel very cold though…

“Mmm...Mama?” Addie groaned, blinking up at her mother.

Midge sighed in relief. She recognized her. Thank Togal. “Yeah, sweetheart, it's me.”

Addie made another small sound. “I want hot chocolate.”

Midge stared at her for a moment before laughing and scooping the girl into her arms. “You can have all the hot chocolate you want when we get back to the castle.”

00000000000000

“Did you have to erase her memory?” Chance asked, setting the coordinates of the ship to head back home.

Admiral Addie Denivar sighed. “Everything has to happen exactly as it happened, or we risk it not happening at all. There can perhaps be some small variants but...her seeing something like that could definitely change things a little too much.”

Chance gave a pout, running his hands through his bright red hair. He knew his wife was right...but still… “Would’ve made things for us a little easier,” he mumbled, nuzzling against Addie’s cheek.

Addie smiled and nuzzled back. “I’d rather not take the chance of it not happening at all,” she told him. “Can’t take a chance to lose a Chance.”

Chance chuckled, long since used to how much of a pun his name was. “In other news, you were an adorable kid.”

“Wasn’t she?” Iris said. He’d taken a moment to take his armor off, getting more comfortable for their journey home. “Smartest person in the room even then.”

“Oh stop it,” Addie said dismissively. “If this is your way of buttering me up for us to have more kids the answer is no. We have enough children. Who are hopefully still asleep when we get home.”

“Oh, come on,” Iris asked, joining on the nuzzling. “One more and we’ll catch up with your parents.”

“You have no idea how full their hands were, as you both are only children. The answer is no.”

Iris knew the answer was no. And they really didn’t need more kids. They’re family felt pretty complete anyway.

However, Iris had a better idea of something to convince Addie of as he nuzzled her cheek a little more. “Okay. No kids.” His hand fell to her hip, pulling her closer as he purred in her ear. “It _ does _ get tough to get some privacy with the ones we have, as much as I love them.” His fingers trailed up her sides, taking advantage of the form-fitting bodysuit she was wearing.

Addie’s breath hitched at Iris’ words, the corners of her mouth turning upward. “Enjoy seeing me fight, My Tallest?”

“Among other things,” Iris answered, leaning over and nipping Addie’s ear.

Chance caught on to the game quickly, moving his nuzzling to under Addie’s chin, letting his breath trail over her skin. “Didn’t you promise to punish us, My Tallest?”

“I certainly did,” Iris replied, his voice coming out as a needy growl.

Addie gasped again, trying to keep from laughing. It was always kind of endearing when her husbands tagged teamed her for attention. “You’re both incorrigible.”

“HEY!” Came a voice from the ships comms. “Are you on your way back yet?!”

Iris gave a loud, frustrated growl. “We’re on our way. Calm the fuck down.”

“You literally fucked off to travel back in time and then-”

Iris wasted no time hanging up on the other person. He could wait. He turned back to his mates. “Where were we?”

00000000000000000

After being looked over about a million times by the medical staff and her mother alike, Addie was able to return to the party. Tallest Purple and Tak even gave her a bit of once over.

“Space-heart, you really need to stop wandering off like that,” Tak told her, patting her cheek affectionately.

Addie snorted a grinned. “I will when you and Aunt Gaz stop getting into trouble with the space mafia.”

Tak choked as Gaz laughed behind her. “That is not...Gaz and I are adults!”

“I don’t think that helps your argument, Tak,” Dib mentioned. Zipper cackled behind him.

Everyone started settling down, instead dancing and singing to all the Christmas music. Addie found herself wandering off to one of the higher towers of the castle, hot chocolate in hand, just to get a good seat for the fireworks that would start soon. She didn’t bother dragging Iris and Thonus along with her, but they followed her anyway, carrying their own hot chocolates.

“Are...you okay?” Iris asked as Addie stared off into the sky. 

“Hmm? Oh, yeah,” she replied, her brow furrowing. “Just...I feel like my brain is scrambled or something.”

“Well, your mom did say it looked like you hit your head,” Thonus said, leaning on the wall of the tower. “I’m sure that will go away after a bit.”

Addie nodded, even though she wasn’t sure how much she agreed. Something just felt like...it was missing from her brain…

The entire castle had been fitted with speakers blaring Christmas music. Her ears perked up when it suddenly began play Winter Wonderland. She blinked a few times before she began singing softly along. Funny. She suddenly really liked this song.

“Since when do you know the lyrics to that one?” Thonus asked.

Addie shrugged. “I guess...since now.”

Suddenly the sky began to explode with color, the fireworks shooting across in brilliant colors of red, green, blue and gold. Addie especially gasped at the deep hues of purple, her favorite color. She beamed up at the display, her previous thoughts of scrambled memories long forgotten.

“Merry Christmas, boys,” Addie told Iris and Thonus.

“May we have a million more!” Iris cheered.

Even Thonus couldn’t make a snide comment in this moment. “Here, here!”

And little did Addie know, somewhere in the future, her older self smiled along with her.

**Author's Note:**

> Want more of Addie and friends? Feel free to follow @addie-bear, @royal-iris and @chances-r-high for more shenanigans!


End file.
